4-year-old girl suffers intestinal obstruction after eating cotton balls from teddy bear

Recently, information from Tam Anh General Hospital ( Ho Chi Minh City), Dr. Nguyen Do Trong, Pediatrician - Cardiologist, said that the hospital had just received a child patient who came to the hospital with acute abdominal pain and constant crying.

Through examination and diagnostic paraclinical tests, the doctors here discovered a large number of foreign objects in the small intestine causing intestinal obstruction, the stomach and the first part of the small intestine were very dilated, the child needed emergency surgery. The surgical team spent 1.5 hours removing dozens of cotton rolls that were crowded and congested in the small intestine.

Amount of cotton found in the intestines of a 4-year-old girl.

“The entire foreign object was cotton wool filled a 500 ml bowl, proving that the baby had swallowed it a long time ago and could not digest it, causing intestinal obstruction. Abdominal fluid had accumulated, and the stomach and first part of the small intestine were dilated,” said Dr. Trong.

Two days earlier, the family said the girl had shown signs of loss of appetite, no bowel movements, and vomiting, so the family thought she had a digestive disorder. On the afternoon of June 17, the girl had a fever and was constantly crying, so the family took her to the emergency room.

Relatives said that when the child went to kindergarten, the family sent a small teddy bear for the child to hug during naps in class. After the child went to the emergency room, the family checked and found that the teddy bear had a tear and was missing half of the stuffing.

“At home, my child watches TV and plays on his phone, and loves eating videos , especially the cotton candy eating scene. There is a camera in his classroom, but he covers himself with a blanket when he sleeps, so we didn’t notice him eating cotton candy,” said Tuong Khanh, the child’s mother.

Children's teddy bear with halved cotton.

According to Dr. Trong, small intestine obstruction in children is not uncommon. The cause may be worms, undigested food residue (cherry fruit seeds, etc.), recently it is common to see magnetic toys when swallowed by children, causing intestinal obstruction... However, this case is very rare because the child took cotton from the teddy bear to eat. If surgery is not performed promptly, the child is at risk of water-electrolyte disorders, intestinal perforation, peritonitis, septic shock - poisoning leading to death.

It is likely that children eat cotton balls due to lack of awareness, the influence of eating videos on social networks, some cases related to psychological problems, Rapunzel syndrome, or Pica syndrome. Rapunzel syndrome is often found in girls who like to eat hair, Pica syndrome is related to cravings for non-food items such as clothes, wool, hair, small metal objects. These are eating disorders that can occur in children with autism or psychological problems.

Dr. Trong advises that children with intestinal obstruction in the early stages are often difficult to identify because they are easily confused with constipation or common digestive disorders. The intestine above the obstruction will swell and stretch, increasing pressure in the intestine, causing venous congestion and reduced capillary blood flow, causing damage to the intestinal mucosa, edema, congestion, leading to reduced and lost absorption. In addition, children vomit a lot, causing dehydration and electrolyte disturbances.

Doctors at the hospital also recommend that, to prevent intestinal obstruction in children, parents need to educate their children about what foods they can and cannot eat. When children show signs related to the digestive tract such as: loss of appetite, refusal to eat, stomachache, vomiting, passing unusual foreign objects in the stool, etc., parents need to take their children to see a doctor.

Thu Phuong

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/be-gai-4-tuoi-bi-tac-ruot-vi-an-ruot-bong-gon-trong-gau-bong-post253392.html